It is a Puzzle
by Katerine-M
Summary: The Wesen Council is back in town. Sort of? And they want… something. Maybe. If only the Grimm gang can figure out what's going on. Some spoilers through S4E8.


**First **_**Grimm**_** story. This is one of several fanfics that have been brewing in my head for a couple months now, so I thought it was best to get it out.**

**The story takes place after S4E8 (Chupacabra), which, as of this writing, is the most recent episode to have aired. The story doesn't take place **_**immediately**_** after that episode, though… more like a couple weeks after. It makes a few assumptions about the outcome of the next couple of episodes, and makes vague references.**

**Warnings: SPOILERS for S4E8. And trust me… you don't want that episode to be spoiled for you, if you haven't seen it yet.**

**Also, it's pretty fluffy. :) Not in a cute way, but in a, "low on action and deep themes" way. It's almost more of a very long character drabble than anything else. Someday, it might evolve into an actual story, but not as it stands in my head right now.**

**Grimm: not mine. These characters: not mine. Although I wish they were.**

**Hope you enjoy! :)**

Rosalee crushed the mugwort, and added it to the mixture. Monroe hovered behind her, his ribs still encased in bandages and his right arm in a sling, though thankfully most of his other wounds were healing well. Sergeant Wu was the only other person in the shop, but even he seemed like a little too much company at the moment. She really wanted some time alone with Monroe, just to sit and heal.

But they weren't the only ones who needed to heal. Wu needed it as well, and Monroe and Rosalee _were_ the go-to friendly Wesen for newly indoctrinated Kehrseite schlichekennen to come and talk to.

_But why can't Nick send him to somebody like __**Bud**__? After everything the guy's been through, wouldn't it make sense to go to the __**least**__ threatening Wesen possible? What's less threatening than an __**Eisbieber**__? Just go and leave us to deal with our __**own**__ wounds, already!_

Rosalee sighed and squashed down the self-pity. It might have been appropriate a month ago, when Nick was their Grimm friend who they dropped everything to help on a weekly basis… for years… but now…

Now, it wasn't so annoying anymore. They owed Nick _so_ much…

So, Rosalee would endure Wu's questions. At least for a little while longer. Wu wasn't quite able to handle seeing a woge yet, due to a large number of quite traumatic experiences, so she and Monroe were trying the "matter of fact" approach, which seemed to work quite well for Wu, although he still sometimes looked like he was having a hard time digesting everything.

"Ok, next question." Wu looked at his list. He had a _list_, written in his little notebook. It appeared to be multiple pages long. He was only on question 3. Rosalee suppressed the urge to break down into tears.

"So, a couple of years ago, there was a rash of aggressive behavior, where the victim would then get… kind of rabid a couple days later, and would start attacking people. One of them came at _me_, with a knife. She had these bleeding sores on her face – "

"Oh, right, that was when Portland got hit with the Yellow Plague." Monroe cut in, before she could think of a more diplomatic way to put it. She didn't reprimand him, though… he was making such great strides in returning to normal.

"The _YELLOW PLAGUE_?"

"Yes. It's actually called, 'Fluvus Pestilentia," and don't worry… it's only contagious to Wesen," Rosalee said.

"Plus, if you'd gotten it, you would _definitely_ know by now! The symptoms start appearing within, like, what is it?"

"Ten to twenty-four hours."

"Right. And it's usually fatal within a week. So even if it were contagious to Kehrseite, which it isn't, you'd definitely know by now. It starts with an increased libido… like, it just goes through the roof. Then there's fever, confusion, mood swings, exhaustion… it was really, really scary when Rosalee got it, but thankfully Nick already knew about it and we were working on a cure by the time she got really sick."

"Wait… _you_ got it?" Wu turned to Rosalee.

_Yes, Wu… remember that I'm a Wesen?_

"Yes. It wasn't fun. From what I heard, I came at Nick with scissors, before he knocked me out and they gave me the cure."

"It was just a little after Hank found out… he was… amazingly helpful, actually, for someone still trying to process everything. I probably would have spilled the entire cure if it weren't for him, I was shaking so badly because I was so scared for Rosalee."

Rosalee stopped mixing and turned to Monroe, giving him a smile. Monroe smiled back. He was _still_ so sweet! Even after… _everything_ he'd just been through, he was still Monroe. Her smile turned brighter, for what felt like the first time in years. _If what those… __**bastards**__… did to him hasn't changed him, he'll never change. He'll always be my dearest Monroe._ It felt, just for a moment, like they were the only two people in the world, and all was right.

And then the bell rang, and Alexander walked in the door. Her heart, which had been flying a second ago, dropped to her stomach. She felt the smile freeze on her face, as the familiar terror overtook her.

She glanced over at Monroe, whose eyes had taken the saucer appearance that they usually took around Alexander. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Wu take notice of their faces.

"Hello, Monroe, Rosalee." Alexander smiled what was probably meant to be a pleasant smile. It _would_ be a pleasant smile on anybody else. He nodded at them, then turned and, with his right hand, began to close the blinds.

His left hand was hidden in his pocket.

_Not good._

"Ahh… do you guys know this gentleman?" Wu's hand was now resting over his gun. Rosalee looked at him, and for the first time that day, she was _genuinely_ glad that he was there, and that he was still in uniform. A member of the Wesen Council _surely_ wouldn't kill them right in front of a Kehrseite, and especially not a Kehrseite cop… would he? That would be a blatant violation of the Gesetzbuch Ehrenkodex, and would go against everything the Council stood for. Right?

Alexander turned and seemed to notice Wu for the first time. He did a minor woge to test for what Wu was, then seemed a little nonplussed to find a Kehrseite. He looked at Rosalee inquiringly.

Choosing her words _very_ carefully, she hesitantly said, "Sergeant Wu, this is Alexander, from the Wesen Council. They enforce Wesen law. We haven't gotten to that part yet. Alexander, this is Sergeant Wu, from the Portland Police Department, and a new Kehrseite schlichkennen. Over the course of the past several years working with the police department here, he's had some traumatic experiences, and he's here for help in adjusting." _There. That should be ok. I hope. Wu wouldn't get in trouble, regardless – Kehrseite who see too much are considered innocent victims, under the law. And Nick's the one who told him, and he's not Wesen, so he's outside the law. The only ones who might get in trouble are Monroe and myself, and __**we're**__ not the ones who told him._

_Please, please let that be ok…_ Alexander wasn't saying anything, just silently considering Wu. His face, as usual, was a complete cipher.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Alexander's face relaxed into an easy smile, and he nodded at Wu. "I'm sorry to hear about your experiences. Perhaps a different time, we can talk about who caused them?"

"They're both dead," Rosalee hurriedly cut in.

Alexander nodded. Then took a deep breath, and almost seemed a little unsure of what to do next. "Rosalee, I'm here because I have need of your professional services."

She blinked. She wasn't quite sure what she was expecting, but it wasn't that. _Well, when in doubt_… she slipped into her storeowner persona. "What can I do to help you?"

He hesitated a bit, glancing at Wu. "Are you able to handle seeing a partial woge, or is that difficult for you?"

Of course, being with the Wesen Council, Alexander would deal with this sort of thing all the time.

"A… _partial_ woge? What is that?"

Alexander looked down. "A partial woge is a woge that involves only part of the body. You see, the issue is that I awoke this morning with my left hand fully woged, and I have not been able to get it to go back to normal. Hence the blinds – I couldn't chance a Kehrseite looking in and seeing it."

"Oh." Rosalee blurted out, momentarily at a loss for words. The thing about Alexander was that he _might_ be completely honest about that. Or not. You just never knew. She looked to Monroe. Nope, she wasn't going to get any help there.

But, when in doubt…

"Have you been having any other issues? Fever, headache, nausea?"

"Headache. For the past week." His mouth tightened in annoyance. "Also, I've been… somewhat fatigued."

"And it's just your left hand?"

"Yes."

"Did you notice anything odd about that hand prior to this morning? Any strange welts, for example?"

Alexander looked surprised, and she thought she saw signs of him being perhaps mildly impressed. "Yes, actually. There was a single welt on my wrist that just appeared two days ago."

"Have you been out in any wooded areas in the past month, here in the States, or in Europe?"

Alexander smiled, and to Rosalee's eyes, it looked almost predatory. "My job _frequently_ takes me into the woods, Rosalee."

She stammered for a moment. "Oh. Yes. Right. Ok. Umm… Wu, _are_ you ok with seeing his hand? Because I really do need to see it." _And please don't leave_.

"Umm… what'll it look like? No offense, sir."

Rosalee looked at Alexander, who nodded his permission. "Kind of like a big cat's paw."

"Oookay." Wu looked at the ceiling, then looked back. "Yeah, sure, go ahead."

Alexander finally pulled his hand out of the pocket of his trench coat, and Rosalee suppressed a sigh of relief when she saw it didn't hold a gun. Not that Alexander was any less deadly without it, but at least that was one worry down.

His hand was, indeed, woged – _fully_ woged, as she could tell from Wu's hiss. She glanced at him, and, satisfied that he didn't seem about to fly off the handle or go catatonic, returned her attention to Alexander's hand. "Monroe, could you grab the magnifying glass and the tweezers?" Monroe started out of his horrified daze, and immediately jumped up, then hissed as it jarred his ribs. Rosalee looked over, torn between concern for her husband and fear of not prioritizing Alexander.

"I'm ok. I'm ok," Monroe muttered, then hurriedly fetched her the items.

Rosalee automatically went to examine the hand, then remembered herself. "May I?" Alexander nodded, still looking annoyingly like this was a totally everyday, normal occurrence. "Where did you see the welt?" Alexander pointed to the underside of his wrist, near his little finger. Rosalee positioned the magnifying glass and got to work, digging through the thick fur to find the welt. After a few moments, she found it, mostly by feel. After a few more moments, she called out, triumphantly, "Found it!" Then immediately flushed as she remembered to whom she was speaking.

Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind. At least, not as far as she could tell. "You found what, may I ask?" Still the picture of perfect manners, and completely unreadable.

"That. Take a look." She pointed with the tweezers she'd taken up.

Alexander looked through the magnifying glass, and, in an unprecedented show of emotion, actually recoiled from his own hand. "Is that a _TICK_?" His horrified, disgusted expression, so contrary to his normal expression, was almost comical.

_Cats. _She suppressed a snort, but Monroe and Wu apparently couldn't, rather alarmingly.

"Yes. You have Lyme disease. Wesen frequently have an uncontrolled woge near the site of infection. You have a few options. You _will_ have to see a medical doctor, to get prescribed antibiotics – and Lyme disease is not Wesen specific, though obviously this particular symptom is. I have a friend who's a Genio innocuo, and owns a private practice that caters a lot to Wesen, and I can forward you there, if you'd like to get started on the antibiotics right away. The woge should go away on its own by the seventh day of antibiotic treatment. If you'd like it to go away sooner, I can make you a tea that can suppress all woges – including deliberate ones, for about 12 hours. To keep the woge away, you'll need a cup every 12 hours at least, but no more than one cup every 8 hours. I'm afraid there's not really anything that gets rid of the involuntary woge but still lets you woge voluntarily, and regardless of whether you take the tea, you will still need to go to the doctor, as the tea only treats the symptom, not the disease."

"I believe I would like the tea. I would also very much like to get that… _thing_… out of me, if you would be so kind; I'm not entirely certain how to do it. What does it cost?"

"Cost?" She was flabbergasted again.

Alexander's smile widened, and now he actually had an amused glint in his eyes. _He's __**toying**__ with us!_

"Yes, Rosalee. _I_, apparently, have Lyme disease. The _Council_ does not have Lyme disease. There is a difference. Please treat me as a normal paying customer."

_Sure. That's going to happen._ Aloud, she said, "Ah, well, seven days' worth of the tea is 14 doses, plus I usually throw in another two, just in case. That will cost 45 dollars, plus another 20 for the consultation. And 10 for removing the tick. Are you sure you don't want the doctor to do that, especially since by then there won't be fur to dig through?" _Please take your tea and go…_

"I want it _out_. _Now._" The disgust returned to his face, and he actually gave a small shudder.

"It will take some time and patience. Let me whip up the tea, first. Not being woged will make it easier to see what we're doing." Quickly, almost running in her haste, she started gathering ingredients, sometimes calling to Monroe to help, which he did very, very silently.

"How are you feeling, Monroe?" Alexander's question took them both so off-guard that they froze in place and stared mutely at him for a moment.

"Umm… ok, I guess," Monroe finally muttered.

"I heard about what happened. I'm very sorry about that. We'd been investigating that cell for some time, but had never gotten much headway in finding the ringleaders. And now, we don't have to. I shall have to thank Nick, sometime."

Rosalee was starting to get a completely different sick feeling in her stomach, this time having nothing to do with safety. "Ah… can I ask… _how _did you hear about what happened with Monroe?"

Alexander's eyebrows went up. "How could I _not_? The story is everywhere. About the Portland Grimm who singlehandedly destroyed a Secundum Naturae Ordinem Wesen cell, all in defense of a Blutbad? That's the kind of story that spreads, especially since there are enough _other_ stories about the Portland Grimm, that people are starting to think this one may actually be true. May I ask… what really happened? Did Nick truly come charging into the trial, behead half of the Order before they even knew he was there, and then have sex with you when he was finished?"

Wu's stunned and bemused, "Ahh… what?" was drowned out by Monroe's roar. "WHAT?" He started wheezing immediately, as the roar hurt both his shoulder and his ribs, but he didn't stop. "Ah, NO. No, that… that is _not_ what… no. What… the…"

Alexander's lips twitched. "Yes, I rather doubted that version of the story, myself. I was just making sure. That was just the version I heard when I was in Switzerland."

Rosalee couldn't help it. She groaned. "Oh. My. God." Not that she shouldn't have been expecting it, since it was certainly true that Nick's behavior was the opposite of what people were raised to expect, but… somehow, she hadn't been expecting it! Plus, it had only been _two weeks_. And the story had reached _Switzerland_?

"Tea."

"What?"

"You were going to make my tea?" Alexander gave her a look of wide-eyed innocence. This time, she didn't have to guess – she _knew_ that was faked!

_What__ is he up to?_ She drew a deep breath, then let it out. _Just make the tea, get the tick out, and then try to figure it all out._

There was a brief silence as she and Monroe finished gathering the ingredients, but when she started mixing, Monroe blurted out the question that had apparently been on _both_ their minds since Alexander had walked in the door.

"So, umm… Alexander, what brings you to Portland? Not that I mind… you… being in Portland… I was just curious."

Alexander gave Monroe a look that betrayed absolutely nothing. "I am on holiday," he said flatly.

"You're… what? Really?" Monroe looked as stunned and confused as Rosalee felt.

Alexander's lips twitched again. "Yes, Monroe, the Wesen Council does offer paid leave to its employees." Which wasn't exactly what Monroe meant, and Rosalee was pretty sure he knew that. _What is this really about?_

"No, I mean, umm… why Portland?"

"The last time I was here, I found I rather liked it. It has a very relaxed atmosphere, which is quite refreshing." This elicited a snort from Wu, who was thankfully immune to retribution, being a Kehrseite. Alexander flashed a smile in his direction. "Plus, the people are quite… intriguing."

_What does __**that**__ mean?_ _You know what? Never mind. Just make the tea._

"When did you get in?" she asked as she finished grinding, in an effort to make some small talk.

"Yesterday. So far, the holiday isn't going _quite_ as I'd hoped," he gestured towards his hand, "but there are some compensations."

_And what does __**that**__ mean?_

"Compensations like what?" Wu asked. Rosalee almost giggled with relief.

"Well, I was wondering how I was going to approach the two of you, but then the problem was solved for me. I could do without the uncontrolled woge, and the headache and fatigue, and of course the… parasite… but at least it gave me a legitimate reason to come in."

_Ok. __**This,**__ I believe._ The problem with Alexander wasn't that he wasn't truthful. It was that you could never tell when he was being truthful or not. But this, she could believe.

"What did you want to talk about?" she asked as she handed him his first cup of tea, which he smelled, then quickly downed.

"Ah, well, this may not be the best time to discuss it." He looked at his hand and smiled in genuine relief as it returned to a normal human hand. Then frowned again as he saw the welt on his wrist. He held the offending hand out to Rosalee, and imperiously commanded, "Out. Now. Please," he added as an afterthought.

Quickly, Rosalee set his hand back on the desk, under the magnifying glass, and began coaxing the tick out, wondering how, or if, she could ask him what she really wanted to know, if she even knew what that was.

Wu saved her again. "So, the people here are intriguing, huh? Any people in particular, or just the general population of Portland? 'Cause, I know we've got a reputation for being weird, but somehow, I don't think that's what you mean by, 'intriguing.'"

"No." Alexander grinned at Wu.

Wu waited a moment. "Annnd… that's all you're going to say? 'No?'"

"Yes." He was still grinning.

Wu raised his eyebrows. Rosalee marveled at how unimpressed he looked. "Ok. So, just to be clear, you _don't_ mean Nick? Cause… you said that there were stories about him, all the way in Switzerland. Monroe and Rosalee have both told me, many times, that Nick isn't a 'typical'… Grimm, whatever that means. And the one time you asked about anything other than that tick, was when you were asking about what Nick did when Monroe was kidnapped. And you said you were hoping for an excuse to talk to Monroe and Rosalee, who are both Nick's friends. And, although for some reason I can't quite pinpoint, _they_ are terrified of you, you've been awfully pleasant to _me_… and I work with the guy.

"And I gotta say… I've been looking at that cat's paw for the past half hour, and I've _got_ a cat… and boy, do you ever remind me of her. You both seem to love nothing more than playing games, and looking into things in places you're probably not supposed to go. So… is this really about Nick?"

For the first time, Alexander really _looked_ at Wu. He'd looked at Wu before, but just to gauge Wu's legal status, and also to be polite. But now, he was _really_ looking at Wu.

Monroe and Rosalee, meanwhile, looked at each other. Because Wu was right. There was still the possibility that Alexander was on some official business that he had to lie about… but there was also the possibility, almost _worse_ than the other possibility, that he was telling the _truth_. And he really _was_ on vacation, and of all the places in the world that he could go, there really _was_ no place he wanted to be, more than Portland, OR, USA.

They'd both gotten so used to thinking of Alexander as a Wesen Council assassin, that they'd forgotten the simple fact that he was also a Pflichttreue. The species that had originated the phrase, "curiosity killed the cat." Pflichttreue were _notorious_ for their love of puzzles and mysteries. They were never happier than when faced with a puzzle or a mystery. They were also notorious for letting their curiosity override their better judgment. Doing things like wandering into unprospected caves… breaking into nuclear facilities so that they can see what they look like on the inside…

…stalking a Grimm, just to figure him out, even though it's not exactly safe to stalk _any_ Grimm…

_This is bad. This… this could get very, very bad._

Alexander was still an employee of the Wesen Council. Whether he was telling the truth or not, it was important that he return from Portland, alive and well. And Nick did not take well to being stalked.

And that wasn't even counting the impact that could result if Alexander ever found out that Juliette was no longer immune to Wesen law.

_This could get really… really… bad._


End file.
